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“It tickles! Stop, stop,” Willie laughed, pushing Simon’s hand away. Simon, exasperated, leaned back and set down the makeup brush. She glanced at her watch and sighed.
“Wille, that’s the fifth time we’ve stopped. We’re supposed to meet Sara and Felice soon,” Simon said, picking the brush back up.
They were sitting on Wilhelm’s bed, makeup palettes and brushes surrounding them as Simon tried (and failed) to put eyeshadow on her. Simon had already done her own makeup, pink and orange seamlessly blending into each other, and white eyeliner bordered her eyes, completing the colors of the lesbian flag.
They were getting ready for the Pride Parade; it was Willie’s first time. At the rate that they were going at right now, however, they might never make it there. Simon reached up to hold Wilhelms's chin with her free hand.
“Don’t. Move,” she ordered, squinting her eyes. Without letting go of Wilhelm, Simon turned to dip the brush into a shimmery lavender powder. Willie obliged, getting her laughter under control.
A few weeks ago, Willie had brought up the topic of makeup. She had seen all of the powders, liners, and colors that Simon regularly put on and had mentioned the possibility of trying it someday. Simon had expressed interest in doing Willie’s makeup before, but until now, Wilhem never felt confident enough to actually try it. Today, however, was the perfect opportunity. They would be with the people they loved most, in a comfortable, safe space. She didn’t have to worry about what others would think.
Simon turned back to see Wilhelm staring at her intently.
“What?”
Willie blinked. A beat later; “You’re cute when you’re focused,” they responded, lips quirked up into a smirk.
This was true, but to be honest, Wilhem always felt a little bit in awe watching Simon work. She had a sense of grace to her movements that made her captivating to watch. They would never get tired of simply being around Simon. The smirk turned into a genuine smile as Simon rolled her eyes.
“Shut up, we don’t have time for this,” she replied. Despite her words, she matched Willie’s smile. She pulled Willie’s face closer, pecking them on the lips.
“Come on, I’m almost done,” she said. “ Close your eyes.”
She started moving the brush back and forth on their eyelids. Her grip on her chin tightened as Wilhem began snickering and fidgeting once again.
After a while, once Simon was satisfied, she let go of them.
“Okay, okay, we’re done with eyeshadow,” she said, putting her hands up. “I’m not even trying eyeliner on you.” After a beat, she continued, “We can do mascara if you want, though.” She gestured for Willie to go to the mirror. “Go look first, and then we can decide.”
Wilhelm closely inspected her face, the hues of purple shimmering underneath the bright light. When she had picked purple, Simon had teased her, asking if she chose purple because it was a “royal color”. She had frowned, partially at the joke, but also because the real reason felt embarrassing now. They had planned on stealing Simon’s coveted purple hoodie later that day. Was it such a crime to take your girlfriend’s clothes and want the makeup to match? Simon had broken into a fit of laughter hearing that, promising to give her hoodie in between chuckles. Jokes aside, purple felt like it had become their own color, a symbol of their relationship rather than the disgusting elitism of the royal family. Willie preferred to think of it that way instead anyways.
Now, as she looked in the mirror, a strange sense of comfort filled her mind. She felt pretty. Simon came to stand next to them.
“How’d I do?” she asked, wrapping an arm around Wilhem‘s waist.
“It’s perfect,” they said.
“You’re perfect,” she replied, pressing a kiss into their jaw.
Wille blushed at the compliment but didn’t refute it. Instead, she turned to face Simon.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“Of course, älskling,” Simon whispered back. She picked up a mascara tube and held out the wand.
“Now, do you want to try it?”
Wilhelm looked at the wand. She had seen Simon put mascara on hundreds of times, face inches away from the mirror, carefully coating her lashes. Willie doubted her own precision compared to Simon’s.
“Okay, but can you do it for me?”
Simon smiled. “I would love to.”
“Tack,” they replied.
“At your service, Your Highness,” she teased lightly, curtseying.
Willie scoffed at the title and gently shoved Simon's shoulder. “You’re the one who wanted to do this in the first place.”
“Oh please, don’t act like you’re not enjoying this.” Simon rolled her eyes. “I’m so sorry, princesa,” she said, but her tone was everything but apologetic.
“Here, look up so I can put it on.”
Willie huffed but dutifully looked up. Simon coated slowly brushed the mascara onto her lashes, cautious of Willie’s tendency to move away.
“Okay, look again,” Simon said, dropping her hand and turning to face the mirror again.
“I love it,” they said, smiling.
“Wonderful, let’s go get dressed so we can head to Felice’s. Sara wants to paint flags on our faces before we go.”
Simon had planned out both of their outfits, hers more elaborate than Willie’s. She changed into a white crop top with rainbow patterns. She put on black fishnets and a pink tennis skirt. Simon then added accessories, wearing a multitude of rings and rainbow earrings. She had started to put her long curls into two space buns when Wilie appeared behind her in the mirror. Their outfit was quite simple in comparison: jeans and a top that matched Simon’s. Not fancy, but comfortable. And, as promised, she wore Simon’s purple hoodie over her shirt. Fashion never quite appealed to them, unlike to Simon. For today, the makeup was more than enough for Wilhelm.
“Ready?” Simon asked, approaching Willie.
She nodded. “You look amazing.”
Simon threaded her fingers through their hair and kissed them in response to the praise. Willie had started to grow her hair out now, the tips constantly getting in her eyes.
“Do you want to do your hair, too?” Simon asked, reading Wilhelm’s mind.
“Sure, what were you thinking?”
A few minutes later, Willie’s hair was pinned back by an array of butterfly clips. The colors of the clips, of course, were in rainbow order. Finally feeling ready, they took one last look in the mirror. An overwhelming sense of self-fulfillment and joy came over her.
“Jag älskar dig, you know that right?” she asked, hugging Simon.
“I do, mi amor,” Simon said, hugging them back. “Now, let’s go have fun.”